Question

【题目】 Harvard researchers have created a tough, low-cost, biodegradable(可生物降解的)material inspired by insects’ hard outer shells. The material’s inventors say it has a number of possible uses and someday could provide a more environmentally friendly alternative to plastic. The material, made from shrimp(虾)shells and proteins produced from silk, is called “shrilk”. It is thin, clean, flexible and strong.

A major benefit of the material is its biodegradability. Plastic’s toughness and flexibility represented a revolution in materials science during the 1950s and 1960s. Decades later, however, plastic’s very durability(耐用性) is raising questions about how appropriate it is for one-time products such as plastic bags, or short-lived consumer goods, used in the home for a few years and then cast into a landfill where they will degrade for centuries. What is the point of making something that lasts 1,000 years?

Shrilk not only will degrade in a landfill, but its basic components are used as fertilizer(肥料), and so will enrich the soil.

Shrilk has great potential, the inventors said. Materials from which it is made are plentiful in nature, found in everything ranging from shrimp shells, insect bodies to living plants. That makes shrilk low-cost, and its mass production possible should it be used for products demanding a lot of material.

Work on shrilk is continuing in the lab. The invertors said the material becomes flexible when wet, so they’re also developing simpler production processes, which could be used for non-medical products, like for computer cases and other products inside the home. They’re even exploring combining it with other materials, like carbon fibers, to give it new properties.

【1】Paragraph 1 of the passage is mainly about shrilk’s _____.

remarkable design

interesting name

major features

basic elements

【2】What has become a concern about plastic?

Using it properly.

Producing it cheaply.

Developing its properties quickly.

Evaluating its contributions fairly.

【3】According to the inventors, shrilk has great potential partly because _____.

it can help plastic degrade

it can be found in living things

its mass production has been realized

its raw materials are abundant in nature

【4】What are the inventors doing in the lab?

Replacing carbon fibers with shrilk.

Testing shrilk’s use in wet conditions.

Making shrilk out of used household goods.

Improving shrilk’s flexibility for medical purposes.

【5】Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?

Recent Progress in Environmental Protection

Benefits of Insects in Scientific Research

The Harm of One-time Products

A Possible Alternative to Plastic

Answer 1

【答案】【1】C

【2】A

【3】D

【4】B

【5】D

【解析】【1】由虾壳和蚕丝生产的蛋白质制成的“shrilk”很薄、透明、有弹性，而且非常结实。其他几个答案明显不对。

【2】第二段主要讲塑料的耐用性让人们对如何合理、恰当使用诸如塑料袋等一些一次性产品的问题开始关注。

【3】由第四段内容可知生产shrilk的材料在大自然中非常丰富……。和答案D“它的原材料在大自然中非常丰富”一致。

【4】由最后一段第二句可知这种材料受潮时变得很有弹性，所以，发明者正在探索这种材料在潮湿环境中的使用方法。

【5】主题概括：一种可能的塑料替代物。